Get Apple Music on iOS, Android, Mac and Windows

EDITORS’ NOTES

Mariah Carey’s fifth album balances big ballads like the heaven-gazing Boyz II Men duet “One Sweet Day” and the Journey tearjerker “Open Arms” with fizzy, featherlight pop that takes cues from hip-hop. “Fantasy,” which pivots on a sample from Tom Tom Club’s “Genius of Love,” shows off Mariah’s lighter side, her joyful vocal energizing its electro-funk hiccups. The gospel-tinged “Always Be My Baby” struts even as it sighs about a lost love.

EDITORS’ NOTES

Mariah Carey’s fifth album balances big ballads like the heaven-gazing Boyz II Men duet “One Sweet Day” and the Journey tearjerker “Open Arms” with fizzy, featherlight pop that takes cues from hip-hop. “Fantasy,” which pivots on a sample from Tom Tom Club’s “Genius of Love,” shows off Mariah’s lighter side, her joyful vocal energizing its electro-funk hiccups. The gospel-tinged “Always Be My Baby” struts even as it sighs about a lost love.